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Gleason 8 diagnosis at 51: Likely opting for surgery
Prostate Cancer | Last Active: 7 minutes ago | Replies (27)Comment receiving replies
I believe this is the ongoing evolution of prostate cancer diagnosis and treatment. If we wait three more years then whole new things will exist - maybe TULSA will be the new normal, maybe PSE tests will completely replace PSA tests. But we can't hold on to maybe's, we just focus on the methods today and in today's early detection it's PSA's at 50+.
I can tell you that three days prior to my PSA results that my urologist ordered, he did a digital (rectal) exam and said straight up "I feel no abnormalities other than you have a small prostate", then recall that it wasn't that long ago that a digital exam was the de-facto method to detect prostate cancer and if it still was then I'd be done for.
I think about Dennis Hopper, who died from metastatic prostate cancer in 2010. He likely missed his chance for early detection due to digital exams. Fast forward to 2025 and he would have had a PSA, PSE, biopsy, MRI, CT and more and might still be around. Further in the future, say 2030, it might be detectable in a urine sample and be 100% accurate. In 2035 it might be a simple pill prevents or fixes it.
We have what we have, and maybe the rules will change now that more < 50 folks are testing positive for PC.
Replies to "I believe this is the ongoing evolution of prostate cancer diagnosis and treatment. If we wait..."
How true that is. Medicine is always evolving. Practitioners, however, learn their skills and come to rely on them during and after that evolution. Unfortunately, many are set in their ways, knowing what they know, practicing thru muscle memory.
Some are simply unable to adapt to a newer technology or feel that it is not tried and true. It’s only human nature, and we’re all guilty of it.
When you see the acceleration of change occurring now because of AI, who knows what bedrock foundations will be shifted and how different treatments will be?
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Yes - I agree with all points : ))) ! But in the meantime lets spread the word and advise all young man to do baseline PSA test at 40, no matter what GP says.
Even as of today American Cancer Soc. recommends PSA tests in this order :
Age 50 for men who are at average risk of prostate cancer and are expected to live at least 10 more years
Age 45 for men at high risk of developing prostate cancer. This includes African American men and men who have a first-degree relative (father or brother) diagnosed with prostate cancer at an early age (younger than age 65).
Age 40 for men at even higher risk (those with more than one first-degree relative who had prostate cancer at an early age)
So our dear "topf" here should have been tested years ago and he was not. I already started advocating with friends and family to do first testing at 40. I had great Gyno who advised me to do my first mammogram at 40 so that I have baseline image, even though that was NOT general recommendation at that time. I am forever grateful for his sincere care and dedication to his profession and being willing to go above and beyond of what was "the norm". He knew that it could be advantage down the road and he did not care what "general recommendation" was at that time.
"Topf" was not tested even though recommendation (as we see above) was that he gets tested. I do not know - things like this drive me nuts ... *sigh